Fuel efficient ultra-low emission and improved pattern factor colorless distributed combustion for stationary and propulsion gas turbine applications

ABSTRACT

Colorless distributed combustion (CDC) reactors or green combustion gas turbine combustors having a combustion chamber are presented for improved performance of gas turbine combustion engines. The combustors are configured and designed for providing a superior pattern factor (uniform thermal field in the combustion zone) and a reduction or complete elimination of pollutants emission from the combustor (i.e., zero emission gas turbine combustor) and uniform thermal field in the entire combustion zone to provide significantly improved pattern factor. Colorless distributed combustion is achieved with fuel and air entering the combustion chamber via one or more injection ports as non-premixed, or premixed. Rectangular, cylindrical, stadium and elliptical shaped combustors are presented with injection ports and exit ports located in various locations of the combustors. The mixture preparation between fuel and air with the hot combustion products is carried out either with the gases present in the combustion chamber or via a communication link between the exit gases from the combustor back to the combustion chamber.

PRIORITY

The present application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) from aU.S. provisional application filed on Jan. 13, 2009 titled “FuelEfficient Ultra Low Emission Colorless Distributed Combustor for GasTurbine Application in Stationary and Propulsion Systems” and assignedU.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/144,295; the entire contents ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH

The invention described herein was made with government support undercontract N000140710911 awarded by the Office of Naval Research. Thegovernment has certain rights in the invention described herein.

RELATED PATENT APPLICATION

The present application is related to a PCT application filed on Oct.30, 2009 titled “METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR RECOVERING SULFUR IN THE THERMALSTAGE OF A CLAUS REACTOR” and assigned PCT/US2009/62758; the entirecontents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

PUBLISHED WORKS INCORPORATED HEREIN BY REFERENCE

The following six published words describe inventive concepts attributedto the inventor of the present application, Ashwani K. Gupta. Thepublished works and their described inventive concepts are allincorporated herein by reference.

The present application is directed to subject matter described in V.Arghode and A. K. Gupta: Investigation of Fuel/Air MixingCharacteristics in a CDC Combustor, Proc. 19^(th) InternationalSymposium on Air Breathing Engines (ISABE), Montreal Canada, Sep. 7-11,2009; the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The present application is also directed to subject matter described inV. Arghode, A. K. Gupta, and K. H. Yu: Investigation of Non-Premixed andPremixed Distributed Combustion for GT Application, 48^(th) AIAAAerospace Sciences Conference, Orlando, Fla., Jan. 3-7, 2010, Paper No.:AIAA 2010-1353; the entire contents of which are incorporated herein forreference.

The present application is also directed to subject matter described inV. Arghode and A. K. Gupta: Colorless Distributed Combustion (CDC):Effect of Flowfield Configuration, Appl Energy (2009),doi:10.1016/j.apenergy.2009.09.032; the entire contents of which areincorporated herein by reference.

The present application is also directed to subject matter described inV. Arghode, A. K. Gupta, and K. H. Yu: Effect of Confinement onColorless Distributed Combustion for Gas Turbine Application, AIAA45^(th) AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference, Denver, Colo.,Aug. 2-5, 2009; the entire contents of which are incorporated herein forreference.

The present application is also directed to subject matter described inV. Arghode, and A. K. Gupta: Colorless Distributed Combustion (CDC):Effect of Flowfield Configuration, 47^(th) AIAA Aerospace SciencesConference, Orlando, Fla., Jan. 5-8, 2009, Paper No.: AIAA 2009-0253;the entire contents of which are incorporated herein for reference.

The present application is also directed to subject matter described inV. Arghode and A. K. Gupta: Colorless Distributed Combustion (CDC) forGas Turbine application, RTO NATO Meeting, Montreal, Canada, October2008; the entire contents of which are incorporated herein forreference.

The present application is also directed to the subject matter describedin V. Arghode and A. K. Gupta: Numerical Simulations for CDC Combustordevelopment, 7^(th) Intl. Symposium on High Temperature Air Combustionand Gasification, Phuket, Thailand, Jan. 13-16, 2008; the entirecontents of which are incorporated herein for reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a method and system for achievinguniform and controlled thermal field in high intensity combustionchambers with no visible flame (called colorless distributed combustion(CDC), or green flame combustion (called green combustion), or greencombustion turbine). The method has significant benefits forapplications in gas turbine combustion, power and propulsionapplications wherein ultra-low pollution emission (emission of oxides ofnitrogen (NOx), CO and carbon (soot) are desired without use of anycatalyst or pollution control equipment. The method also providesbenefits for uniform thermal field in the entire combustion chamber toimprove the pattern factor of the hot gases at entrance to the turbineand for the combustion chamber to be called an Isothermal ReactorCombustion Chamber. The CDC method of combustion gives superiorperformance and can also be used as green combustion turbine in gasturbine applications. Different methods and systems are given to achieveCDC or green combustion that results in complete combustion of fuel withlow uniform thermal field in the combustion chamber, low emissions, lownoise levels and significantly improves turbine blade life without anymaintenance. The uniform thermal field in the combustor according to thepresent disclosure alleviates local burnout or thermal fatigue of thecombustor to provide low noise, energy savings and longer life ofcombustor and blades of combustion turbines.

BACKGROUND

A combustor is a component or area of a gas turbine, ramjet or pulse jetengine where combustion takes place. It is also known as a burner orflame. In a gas turbine engine, the main combustor or combustion chamberis fed high pressure air by the compression system and feeds the hotexhaust into the turbine components of the engine to produce power. Theturbine can also be used as a gas generator.

Combustors are designed to contain and control the burning fuel-airmixture. The combustor normally consists of three components: an outercasing that acts as a high pressure container, the combustion chamberitself which contains the flame and the fuel injection system.

There are two categories of combustors, annular and can. Can combustorslook like cans and are mounted around the shaft in an engine. They canbe easily removed for maintenance and provide convenient plumbing forfuel. Annular combustors are more compact and embedded deep within theengine's casing. Modern jet engines usually have annular combustors.

A main concern in the design of gas turbine combustors is to achieve lowpollutant emissions and better pattern factor (uniform thermal field atthe combustor exit port). In this regard, modern jet engines with doubleannular combustors are being introduced to reduce emissions.Additionally, many combustion techniques have been investigated toachieve low pollutants emission (NOx, CO) for gas turbine combustors.Some examples include rich burn—quick quench—lean burn (RQL), catalyticcombustion, lean direct injection, and ultra lean premixed combustion.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure describes the use of Colorless DistributedCombustion (CDC), which is based on the principle of high temperatureair combustion (HiTAC), in the design of a gas turbine combustor. CDChas shown significant reduction of NOx and CO emissions in addition toimproved pattern factor, stable combustion and noise reduction in a gasturbine combustor. The common key feature to achieve reactions in CDCmode is the separation and controlled mixing of higher momentum air jetand the lower momentum fuel jet. The CDC mode and also the greencombustion turbine mode require fuel air preparation via internal orexternal hot gas recirculation into the fresh reactant mixture from thecombustion chamber.

The present disclosure also discusses an investigation into the effectof fuel and air jet mixing in understanding the characteristics of CDCcombustion and for developing fuel-efficient gas turbine combustors forstationary and propulsion and stationary applications. Additionally,effect of fuel and air injection diameter which was investigatednumerically and experimentally for the CDC combustor is described in thepresent disclosure. In numerical investigation it was observed that thelarger fuel injection diameter results in faster mixing between air andthe fuel jet. However, almost similar NO and CO levels were observedwith change in fuel injection diameter experimentally. This may be dueto faster mixing for different fuel injection diameter before theentrainment of the recirculated gases and ignition. With change in airinjection diameter, the mixing between the air and fuel jet revealssimilar profile over the range of diameters examined.

For smaller air injection diameter, better turbulence mixing is expectedto result in the alleviation of hot spot regions in the combustor. Thesehot spot regions in the combustor cause local burn out of the combustorwhich reduces the life of the combustor. In experimental investigationNO and CO emissions were observed to increase with increase in airinjection diameter. Premixed mode of combustion, under the well preparedfuel mixture conditions according to the present disclosure, revealsalmost colorless flame with ultra-low NOx emissions (less than 1 ppm)and very low CO emissions. Under certain conditions green color was alsoachieved. This mode is called green combustion turbine mode.

The combustor according to the present disclosure does not require anypreheat of the air other than the available air from the compressor thatis preheated to some elevated temperatures. The combustor also does notrequire the use of any catalyst to achieve ultra low emissions of NOxand CO. Further, the combustor according to the present disclosureachieves zero emission of NOx, CO, hydrocarbons and soot with thecarefully prepared fuel-air mixture which is introduced into thecombustor with controlled mixing with the hot gases inside the combustorprior to the mixture ignition. The hot gases could be from within thecombustor via proper injection of fuel and air into the combustor, orthey could be recirculated gases from the combustor exit port, or fromthe exhaust of the turbine in a gas turbine engine recirculated back tothe head end of the combustor.

The present disclosure further describes many different embodiments fora colorless distributed combustion reactor or green combustion turbinefor gas turbine combustion or isothermal reactor for improvedperformance of gas turbine combustion engines that are configured anddesigned for providing the superior pattern factor (uniform thermalfield in the entire combustion zone of the combustor so that the flameis distributed combustion) and reduction of pollutants emission.According to the present disclosure, the colorless distributedcombustion can be achieved with fuel and air entering the combustionchamber as non-premixed, or premixed (i.e., fuel plus heated air oroxidizer fluid) or partially premixed. The fuel and air could also bemixed with the hot combustion product gases from the combustor exit portto preheat the reactants. This mode is referred to as preheating of thereactants with external combustion products gas recirculation.Alternatively, it could be preheated using internal recirculation of thehot gases mixing with the incoming air and fuel prior to ignition of themixture.

These and other advantages and inventive concepts are described hereinwith reference to the drawings and the detailed description whichfollows.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic diagram with dimensions shown in inchesof a colorless distributed combustion gas turbine combustor according tothe present disclosure;

FIG. 2 illustrates velocity contours in the plane of air and fuelinjection ports for variation of (a) fuel injection diameter and (b) airinjection diameter;

FIG. 3 shows graphs illustrating centerline velocity decay of air jet(a) effect of fuel injection diameter; and (b) effect of air injectiondiameter;

FIG. 4 shows graphs illustrating centerline methane mass fractionvariation for air jet (a) effect of fuel injection diameter; and (b)effect of air injection diameter;

FIGS. 5( a)-(e) show graphs illustrating centerline velocity and CH4concentration decay for the fuel jet for various dimensions of the fuelinjection and air injection diameters;

FIGS. 6( a)-(f) includes several global pictures of the premixed and thenon-premixed reaction zone for various dimensions of the fuel injectionand air injection diameters;

FIG. 7 shows graphs illustrating effect of fuel injection diameter on(a) CO and (b) NO emissions;

FIG. 8 shows graphs illustrating effect of air injection diameter on (a)CO and (b) NO emissions; and

FIGS. 9-45 illustrate diagrams of various embodiments of a gas turbineCDC combustor according to the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A description of Colorless Distributed Combustion (CDC) and greencombustion turbine is provided in Section I. Section I further describesa study which investigated numerically the effect of fuel injectiondiameter and air injection diameter on the fuel/air mixing behavior atconstant flow rates corresponding to heat load of 25 kW and equivalenceration of 0.8 for methane fuel.

Section II describes many different embodiments for a colorlessdistributed combustion reactor or green combustion gas turbine combustoror reactor for improved performance of gas turbine combustion enginesthat are configured and designed for providing the superior patternfactor (uniform thermal field in the combustion zone) and a reduction inpollutants emission. According to the present disclosure, the colorlessdistributed combustion can be achieved with fuel and heated air enteringthe combustion chamber as non-premixed, or premixed. Two differentshapes of the combustor are described and shown, including rectangularand cylindrical shaped combustors.

I. Colorless Distributed Combustion (CDC) and CDC Combustor

A. Colorless Distributed Combustion

Colorless Distributed Combustion (CDC) possesses significant advantagesfor ultra low NOx and CO emissions in gas turbine combustors used forstationary and propulsion applications. The key feature to achieve CDCcharacteristics is the separation of strong (higher momentum) air jetand weak (lower momentum) fuel jet and their controlled interaction. InCDC mode both air and fuel jets entrain the surrounding product gasesand further downstream the weak fuel jet gets entrained and mix with thestrong air jet to spontaneously ignite and react in distributed regime.The amount of product gases entrained by the air and fuel jets at thepoint of confluence governs the local temperature and oxygenconcentration and hence the ignition delay time for spontaneousignition.

B. Effect of Fuel Injection Diameter and Air Injection Diameter

A detailed study of fuel/air mixing and entrainment behavior is criticalto achieve reactions in CDC regime. In this investigation, the effect offuel injection diameter and air injection diameter was investigatednumerically on the fuel/air mixing behavior at constant flow ratescorresponding to heat load of 25 kW and equivalence ratio of 0.8 formethane fuel. These characteristics are quite typical of gas turbinecombustion conditions. Furthermore, experiments in reacting conditionswere performed to examine the effect of fuel/air mixing on the emissionsof NOx and CO from the combustor.

It was observed that the higher air injection diameter resulted insignificantly higher levels of NOx and CO whereas change in fuelinjection diameter had minimal effect on the NOx and CO emissions. Theresults were also compared with the premixed combustion mode. Thepremixed combustion mode theoretically provides perfect mixing andminimum hot spot regions and hence results in lowest NOx and CO levels.Very low visible emissions were observed for premixed mode as comparedto the non-premixed combustion mode. Under certain conditions the colorof the flame is green to provide applications as green combustionturbine in gas turbine engines with uniform thermal fieldcharacteristics in the entire combustion zone.

C. Geometry of Combustor

FIG. 1 shows a schematic of a combustor 10 used for the study accordingto the present disclosure. The dimensions of the combustor 10 are shownin inches in FIG. 1. The combustor 10 has a combustion chamber 12 andoptical access from three sides of the combustor 10. Optical access isfrom the three vertical sides 14 a-c in FIG. 1. A fourth vertical side14 d has steel plate with port for mixture igniter.

Fuel and air injection holes 16 a, b are on the diagonals of a bottomside 18 of the chamber 12 in the sets of four and the combustion productgas exit or exhaust port 20 is on a top side 22. Different sizes of fueland air injection ports can be used to examine the effect of fuel/airmixing on CDC characteristics.

In one present study according to the present disclosure, three airinjection port sizes and three fuel injection port sizes wereinvestigated. The distance between the air and fuel injection ports issame for all the cases. One premixed flow configuration (smallest airinjection port size) has also been investigated. Premixed flowconfiguration allows for the investigation of the case where minimum hotspots are present for comparison with other non-premixed cases.

The experimental condition for the six cases under investigation ispresented in Table 1.

TABLE 1 Dimensions and the velocity for different cases underinvestigation. Momentum Air inj. vel. m/s) Fuel inj. ratio d_air d_fuelPhi = Phi = Phi = vel. (air/fuel) (in.) (in.) 0.7 0.8 0.9 (m/s) (phi =0.8) Baseline case Case 1 0.1875 0.0625 146.3 128.0 113.8 97.3 28.19Effect of fuel injection diameter Case 2 0.1875 0.125 146.3 128.0 113.824.3 112.3 Case 3 0.1875 0.1875 146.3 128.0 113.8 10.8 253.7 Effect offuel injection diameter Case 4 0.3125 0.0625 52.7 46.1 41.0 97.3 10.8Case 5 0.4375 0.0625 26.9 23.5 20.9 97.3 5.14 Premixed Case 6 0.1875157.1 138.8 124.6 — —

The case with smallest air (diameter=0.1875 inch) and fuel(diameter=0.0625 inch) port is considered as the baseline case and isused for examining the effect of air and fuel injection diameter bychanging one parameter at a time. The mass flowrates of air and fuel(methane) corresponds to heat load of 25 kW (heat release intensity of 5MW/m³-atm). The temperature for both air and fuel jet is 300 K andoperating pressure is 1 atm.

D. Numerical Analysis

The jet profile and mixing between fuel and air under non-reactingcondition is examined for three air and fuel injection port sizes. Theflowfield and species distribution is solved using a steady state,implicit, finite volume based method. SIMPLE algorithm is used forpressure velocity coupling. Full hexahedral grid is used to minimize thegrid size and appropriate refinement of grid is performed in the regionswith higher gradients. Geometrical symmetry is used to reduce thecomputational time and only one-eighth of the geometry with grid size ofabout 0.5 million cells was modeled. Realizable k-e model with standardwall functions is used to model turbulence. Realizable k-e model hasbeen shown to provide more accurate prediction of profile and spreadingof non-reacting round jets. Convergence is obtained when the residualsfor all the variables are less than 1e-04. The centerline jet velocityprofile obtained from the numerical solution is compared with thecorrelation given in equation 1. For all simulations commercial softwareFLUENT code is used.

$\begin{matrix}{\frac{V_{k}}{V_{i}} = {6.575\left( \frac{X}{D} \right)^{- 1}}} & (1)\end{matrix}$

-   X=distance along the centerline of the jet,-   V_(x)=jet centerline velocity-   D=jet diameter, V_(i)=initial jet velocity    E. Experimental Setup and Measurements

The combustor was allowed to run for about 20 minutes in eachconfiguration before taking the experimental data. The exhaust gassample was collected using an iso-kinetic, water-quenched samplingprobe. The NO concentration was measured using the chemiluminescence gasanalyzer, CO concentration was measured using the non-dispersiveinfrared analyzer, and O₂ concentration (used to correct the NO and COemissions at standard 15% oxygen concentration) was measured using thegalvanic cell method. The emission readings were observed to stabilizewithin 3 minutes for all changes in experimental condition (for example,change in equivalence ratio for the same configuration). The experimentswere repeated three times for each configuration and the uncertainty wasestimated to be about ±0.5 ppm for NO and ±20% for CO emissions. Adigital camera was used to record the global flame images for all theconfigurations.

F. Sample Experimental Results

FIG. 2( a) shows the velocity contour plots along the diagonal plane(containing the air and fuel injection ports) for the effect fuelinjection diameter. It can be observed that for smaller fuel injectiondiameter (higher momentum of fuel jet) the fuel jet decay is delayed.The point of confluence of air and fuel jet shifts to downstreamlocation with increase in momentum of fuel jet. The change in fuelinjection diameter has minimal effect on the air jet characteristics asobserved from FIG. 2( a).

The centerline velocity decay plot of air jet for different fuelinjection diameters also reveals almost similar profiles of the air jet(see FIG. 3( a)). It can also be observed that a fair matching betweenthe centerline velocity of air jet and correlation (equation 1) is alsoobtained (see FIG. 3( a)). The centerline methane mass fraction profilefor the air jet is presented in FIG. 4( a). It can be observed thatearly mixing between fuel and air jet is obtained for the case withlower fuel jet momentum (larger fuel injection diameter) (as alsoobserved from the velocity contours of FIG. 3( a)). However the (air jetcenterline) methane mass fraction profiles are similar for fuelinjection diameter of 0.125 inch and 0.1875 inch.

The centerline velocity decay and methane mass fraction profile alongthe fuel jet is presented in FIGS. 5( a), (b) and (c) for the effect offuel injection diameter. It can be observed that for higher momentum offuel jet the velocity and mass fraction profiles are similar and closerto the corresponding velocity decay profile for free jets (equations 1).However as the momentum of fuel jet is decreased (diameter is increased)the jet decays rapidly as compared to the corresponding free jets. Thisimplies that the cross flow (due to entrainment due to air jet) hassignificant effect on the decay of fuel jet at larger diameter. Atlarger diameter the methane mass fraction decay is more than thevelocity decay. This may be due to higher velocity of the cross flow dueto air jet.

FIG. 2( b) shows the velocity contour along the diagonal plane(containing the air and fuel injection ports) for the effect of airinjection diameter. It can be observed that for larger air injectiondiameter the point of confluence between air and fuel injection portshifts to the downstream location. This may be due to relatively weakercross flow for the case of larger air injection diameter which delaysthe decay of fuel jet. The centerline velocity decay for the three airinjection port diameters is shown in FIG. 3( b). It can be observed thata fair matching between the centerline velocity decay for free jet(equation 1) is observed.

The methane mass fraction profile along the centerline of air jet ispresented in FIG. 4( b). It can be observed that the centerline methanemass fraction profiles are almost similar with increase in air injectiondiameter. Even though the fuel/air mixing is delayed with increase inair injection diameter (see, FIG. 2( b)) the methane mass fractionprofiles scaled with the air injection diameter reveals similarprofiles. It may be noted that the recirculation of product gases alsoincreases linearly with air jet diameter.

Hence it appears that the amount of recirculated gases for same methanemass fraction will be similar even with increase in air injectiondiameter. However the turbulent mixing for the smaller air injectiondiameter is better as compared to larger air injection diameter (mixingtime˜D/Umean). Hence it is expected that the case with smaller airinjection diameter will result in better mixing and lesser hot spotregions.

The decay of velocity and methane mass fraction for the fuel jet ispresented in FIGS. 5( a), (d) and (e). It can be observed that thevelocity and methane mass fraction decay profiles are similar howeverthe decay is higher as compared to the free jet. As the air injectiondiameter is increased the velocity decay profile for the fuel jet movescloser the free jet decay profile. This may be due to relatively weakercross flow present for the case with larger air injection diameter.

G. Experimental Observations

Global flame photographs for the baseline non-premixed flame (case 1)and premixed flame (case 6) were taken as shown in FIG. 6. It can beobserved that for both non-premixed and premixed cases the flame appearsto be uniformly distributed. Very low visible emissions are observed forpremixed flame at the equivalence ratio of 0.7 and flame appears to bealmost colorless. As the equivalence ratio is increased the visibleemission is also observed to increase for both non-premixed and thepremixed mode.

Higher glow from the combustor walls is also observed with increase inthe equivalence ratio, and this can be related to higher (adiabatic)flame temperatures with increase in equivalence ratios. Since both airand fuel are injected from the bottom side of the combustor the reactionproceeds mostly along the length of the combustor towards the top side,which results in relatively high temperature product gases present onthe top side of the combustor (also seen from the higher glow from thecombustor wall on the top side of the combustor).

FIG. 7 shows the emissions of carbon monoxide (CO) and nitric oxide (NO)with change in fuel injection diameter. It can be observed that both COand NO emissions are lowest for the premixed mode of combustion. For thepremixed configuration (case 6), the NO levels are very low (about 1ppm). This can be attributed to minimum hot-spots regions associatedwith premixed mode of combustion. For non-premixed mode changing fuelinjection diameter has minimal effect on both NO and CO emissions asobserved from FIG. 7. The figure also reveals that proper mixturepreparation can provide zero NO and CO emission and also uniform thermalfield in the entire combustion zone to avoid the hot spot zones.

It may be noted that for larger fuel injection diameter the fuel jetmixes earlier with the air jet (see FIGS. 2( a) and 4(a)). The ignitionof fuel/air mixture will take place after sufficient amount of productgases are entrained and the mixture temperature rises above theauto-ignition temperature. Hence for the present case it is possiblethat the fuel/air mixing is sufficiently faster before the ignition offuel take place.

With increase in air injection diameter, the turbulent mixing timesignificantly reduces which may lead to variable stoichiometry and morehot-spot regions and hence result in higher NO and CO levels. For allthe cases CO level increases significantly with increase in equivalenceratio. This is due to lack of availability of oxygen as well asdissociation of CO₂ at high temperatures (at higher equivalence ratio).The NO levels for non-premixed operation (cases 1-5) are almost constantwith increase in equivalence ratio.

It may be noted that in non-premixed combustion reaction takes place atan overall equivalence which is higher than (close to stoichiometry) theinlet equivalence ratio. Hence in the reaction zone is stabilized atsimilar equivalence ratio the NO level will be almost similar withincrease in inlet equivalence ratio (see FIGS. 7( b) and 8(b)). Forpremixed combustion as the reaction zone is stabilized at inletequivalence ratio, hence with increase in equivalence ratio the NOconcentration is observed to increase (see FIGS. 7( b) and 8(b)).

II. CDC Gas Turbine Combustor

A description will now be provided with reference to FIGS. 9-45 ofdifferent embodiments for a colorless distributed combustion reactor orgreen combustion gas turbine combustor or reactor for improvedperformance of gas turbine combustion engines that are configured anddesigned for providing the superior pattern factor (uniform thermalfield in the combustion zone) and a reduction in emission pollutants.According to the present disclosure, the colorless distributedcombustion can be achieved with fuel and air (i.e., combustible andoxidizer fluids, respectively) entering the combustion chamber asnon-premixed, or premixed.

FIGS. 9-45 illustrate diagrams of various embodiments of a gas turbineCDC combustor according to the present disclosure. Each embodiment ofthe gas turbine combustor includes a housing (either rectangular orcylindrical) defining a combustion chamber, at least one first fluidinjection port for introducing heated air (i.e., heated oxidizer fluidfrom the compressor) at temperatures of about 400-800K depending on thepressure ratio of the combustor, or an oxidizer fluid into thecombustion chamber. The heated air or heated oxidizer fluid can includerecycled fluids which have exited the combustion chamber from an exitport mixed with a diluted oxygen-concentrated air from the compressor.

Each embodiment also includes at least one second fluid injection portfor introducing fuel (i.e., combustible fluid) into the combustionchamber. Several embodiments are also described wherein the heated air(or heated oxidizer fluid) and fuel (i.e., combustible fluid) arepremixed or non-premixed and introduced into the combustion chamber fromat least one fuel/air injection port. A description of each embodimentwith reference to the figures follows.

FIG. 9 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 900 having acombustion chamber 902, a fuel injection port 904 in fluid communicationwith the combustion chamber 902, an air injection port 906 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber 902, and an exit port 908 influid communication with the combustion chamber 902. The air injectionport 906 is located on the bottom side 910 of the combustor 900 alongthe central axis thereof. The fuel injection port 904 is located on thetop, left side 912 of the combustor 900, and the exit port 908 islocated on the top, right side 914 of the combustor 900. It iscontemplated that the gas turbine combustor 900 and the gas turbinecombustors shown by FIGS. 9-25 each have a housing which can have anyshape, including rectangular, square, circular, stadium and elliptical.For exemplary purposes, each of these figures illustrates a rectangularhousing.

As shown by FIG. 9, an opposed flow configuration is created within thecombustion chamber 902 as the fuel enters the combustion chamber 902from the fuel injection port 904 located on the top side 912 and theheated air enters the combustion chamber 902 from the air injection port906 located on a bottom side of the combustor 900. Ignition occurs inproximity to the fuel injection port 904 and colorless distributedcombustion occurs mainly throughout the combustion chamber 902. Avertical uniform thermal field is created within the combustion chamber902 on the left side. The combustion byproducts circulate within thecombustion chamber 902 in a vertical pattern and exit the combustionchamber 902 via the exit port 908.

FIG. 10 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 1000 havinga combustion chamber 1002, a fuel injection port 1004 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port 1006 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 1008in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The air injectionport 1006 is located on the bottom side 1010 of the combustor 1000 alongthe central axis thereof. The fuel injection port 1004 is located to theleft of the air injection port 1006, and the exit port 1008 is locatedon the top, right side 1014 of the combustor 1000.

As shown by FIG. 10, a co-flow configuration is created within thecombustion chamber 1002 as the fuel enters the combustion chamber 1002from the fuel injection port 1004 located on the bottom side 1010 of thecombustor 1000 and the heated air enters the combustion chamber 1002from the air injection port 1006 also located on the bottom side 1010 ofthe combustor 1000. A vertical uniform thermal field is created withinthe combustion chamber 1002 on the left side. The combustion byproductscirculate within the combustion chamber 1002 in a vertical pattern andexit the combustion chamber 1002 via the exit port 1008. Ignition occursalong the central axis and colorless distributed combustion occursmainly throughout the combustion chamber 1002.

FIG. 11 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 1100 similarto the CDC combustor 1000. In this embodiment, different nozzle exitgeometries are selected for at least one of the fuel and air injectionports 1104, 1106 as shown by FIG. 11. Each nozzle exit geometry producesa different spray or dispense pattern within the combustion chamber1102. Some shapes for the nozzle exit geometry are shown by FIG. 11.These shapes are shown for illustrative purposes only; other shapes andconfigurations besides those shown by FIG. 11 are contemplated withinthe scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 12 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 1200 havinga combustion chamber 1202, a fuel injection port 1204 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port 1206 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 1208in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The air injectionport 1206 is located on a bottom side 1210 of the combustor 1200 andpositioned along a non-perpendicular angle with respect to a horizontalaxis of the bottom side 1210. As such, a longitudinal axis of the airinjection port 1206 intersects a longitudinal axis of the fuel injectionport 1204 at a point within the combustion chamber 1202. The fuelinjection port to 1204 is located to the left of the air injection port1206, and the exit port 1208 is located on the top, right side 1214 ofthe combustor 1200.

As shown by FIG. 12, a co-flow configuration is created within thecombustion chamber 1202 as the fuel enters the combustion chamber 1202from the fuel injection port 1204 located on the bottom side 1210 of thecombustor 1200 and the heated air enters the combustion chamber 1202from the air injection port 1206 also located on the bottom side 1210 ofthe combustor 1200. A vertical uniform thermal field is created withinthe combustion chamber 1202 on the left side. The combustion byproductscirculate within the combustion chamber 1202 in a vertical pattern andexit the combustion chamber 1202 via the exit port 1208.

Ignition occurs along an axis which intersects the central axis.Colorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 1202; a bottom portion of the combustion chamber 1202 does nothave any colorless distributed combustion occurring as shown by FIG. 12.

FIG. 13 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 1300 havinga combustion chamber 1302, a fuel/air injection port 1304 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 1308 influid communication with the combustion chamber. The fuel/air injectionport 1304 is located on a bottom side 1310 of the combustor 1300 alongthe central axis thereof. The exit port 1308 is located on the top,right side 1314 of the combustor 1300.

As shown by FIG. 13, a co-annular flow configuration is created withinthe combustion chamber 1302 as the fuel/air which is premixed enters thecombustion chamber 1302 from the fuel/air injection port 1304 located onthe bottom side 1310 of the combustor 1300. A vertical uniform thermalfield is created within the combustion chamber 1302 on the left side.The combustion byproducts circulate within the combustion chamber 1302in a vertical pattern and exit the combustion chamber 1302 via the exitport 1308. Ignition occurs along the central axis of the combustor 1300and colorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout thecombustion chamber 1302.

FIG. 14 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 1400 havinga combustion chamber 1402, a fuel injection port 1404 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port 1406 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 1408in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The air injectionport 1406 is located on a bottom side 1410 of the combustor 1400. Thefuel injection port 1404 is located to the right of the air injectionport 1406 along a central axis of the combustor 1400, and the exit port1408 is located on the top, right side 1414 of the combustor 1400.

As shown by FIG. 14, a co-flow configuration with a high velocity airjet near the combustor walls is created within the combustion chamber1402 as the fuel enters the combustion chamber 1402 from the fuelinjection port 1404 located on the bottom side 1410 of the combustor1400 and the heated air enters the combustion chamber 1402 from the airinjection port 1406 also located on the bottom side 1410 of thecombustor 1400. A vertical uniform thermal field is created within thecenter of the combustion chamber 1402. The combustion byproducts exitthe combustion chamber 1402 via the exit port 1408. Ignition occursalong an axis of the air injection port 1406 and colorless distributedcombustion occurs mainly throughout the combustion chamber 1402.

FIG. 15 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 1500 havinga combustion chamber 1502, a fuel injection port 1504 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port 1506 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 1508in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The air injectionport 1506 is located on a bottom side 1510 of the combustor 1500. Thefuel injection port 1504 is located to the right of the air injectionport 1506, and the exit port 1508 is located on the top, right side 1514of the combustor 1500.

As shown by FIG. 15, a co-flow configuration is created within thecombustion chamber 1502 as the fuel enters the combustion chamber 1502from the fuel injection port 1504 located on the bottom side 1510 of thecombustor 1500 and the heated air enters the combustion chamber 1502from the air injection port 1506 also located on the bottom side 1510 ofthe combustor 1500. A vertical uniform thermal field is created withinthe combustion chamber 1502. The combustion byproducts exit thecombustion chamber 1502 via the exit port 1508. Ignition occurs alongthe central axis of the combustor 1500 and colorless distributedcombustion occurs mainly throughout the combustion chamber 1502.

FIG. 16 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 1600 havinga combustion chamber 1602, a fuel/air injection port 1604 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 1608 influid communication with the combustion chamber. The fuel/air injectionport 1604 is located on a bottom side 1610 of the combustor 1600 anddisplaced from the central axis. The exit port 1608 is located on thetop, right side 1614 of the combustor 1600.

As shown by FIG. 16, a co-annular flow configuration is created withinthe combustion chamber 1602 as the fuel/air which is premixed enters thecombustion chamber 1602 from the fuel/air injection port 1604 located onthe bottom side 1610 of the combustor 1600. A vertical uniform thermalfield is created within the combustion chamber 1602. The combustionbyproducts exit the combustion chamber 1602 via the exit port 1608.Ignition occurs along an axis of the fuel/air injection port 1604 andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 1602.

FIG. 17 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 1700 havinga combustion chamber 1702, a fuel injection port 1704 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port 1706 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 1708in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The air injectionport 1706 is located on a top side 1710 of the combustor 1700. The fuelinjection port 1704 is located on a bottom side 1712 of the combustor1700 along a central axis of the combustor 1700, and the exit port 1708is located on the top, right side 1714 of the combustor 1700.

As shown by FIG. 17, an opposed flow configuration is created within thecombustion chamber 1702 as the fuel enters the combustion chamber 1702from the fuel injection port 1704 located on the bottom side 1712 andthe heated air enters the combustion chamber 1702 from the air injectionport 1706 located on the top side 1710 of the combustor 1700. A verticaluniform thermal field is created within the combustion chamber 1702. Thecombustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 1702 via the exit port1708. Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel injection port 1704 andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 1702.

FIG. 18 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 1800 havinga combustion chamber 1802, a fuel injection port 1804 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port 1806 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 1808in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The air injectionport 1806 is located on a top side 1810 of the combustor 1800 along acentral axis thereof. The fuel injection port 1804 is located on abottom side 1812 of the combustor 1800, and the exit port 1808 islocated on the top, right side 1814 of the combustor 1800.

As shown by FIG. 18, an opposed flow configuration is created within thecombustion chamber 1802 with the fuel injected towards the combustorwall, as the fuel enters the combustion chamber 1802 from the fuelinjection port 1804 located on the bottom side 1812 and the heated airenters the combustion chamber 1802 from the air injection port 1806located on the top side 1810 of the combustor 1800. A vertical uniformthermal field is created within the combustion chamber 1802. Thecombustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 1802 via the exit port1808. Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel injection port 1804 andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 1802.

FIG. 19 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 1900 havinga combustion chamber 1902, a fuel injection port 1904 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port 1906 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 1908in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The air injectionport 1906 is located on a top side 1910 of the combustor 1900. The fuelinjection port 1904 is also located on the top side 1910 of thecombustor 1900 and along a central axis thereof. The exit port 1908 islocated on the top, right side 1914 of the combustor 1900.

As shown by FIG. 19, a co-flow configuration is created within thecombustion chamber 1902 as the heated air and fuel enter the combustionchamber 1902 from the same side of the combustor 1900. A verticaluniform thermal field is created within the combustion chamber 1902. Thecombustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 1902 via the exit port1908. Ignition occurs along an axis of the air injection port 1906 andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 1902.

FIG. 20 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 2000 havinga combustion chamber 2002, a fuel/air injection port 2004 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 2008 influid communication with the combustion chamber. The fuel/air injectionport 2004 is located on a top side 2010 of the combustor 2000 anddisplaced from the central axis. The exit port 2008 is located on thetop, right side 2014 of the combustor 2000.

As shown by FIG. 20, a co-annular flow configuration is created withinthe combustion chamber 2002 as the fuel/air which is premixed enters thecombustion chamber 2002 from the fuel/air injection port 2004 located onthe top side 2010 of the combustor 2000. A vertical uniform thermalfield is created within the combustion chamber 2002. The combustionbyproducts exit the combustion chamber 2002 via the exit port 2008.Ignition occurs along an axis of the fuel/air injection port 2004 andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 2002.

FIG. 21 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 2100 havinga combustion chamber 2102, multiple fuel/air injection ports 2104 a-i,and an exit port 2108 in fluid communication with the combustionchamber. The fuel/air injection ports 2104 a-i are located on threesides 2110 a-c of the combustor 2100, including one along a central axisof the to combustor 2100. The exit port 2108 is located on a top side2114 of the combustor 2100 and along the central axis thereof.

As shown by FIG. 21, premixed air and fuel enter the combustion chamber2102 from multiple sides of the combustor 2100. Multiple uniform thermalfields are created within the combustion chamber 2102. The combustionbyproducts exit the combustion chamber 2102 via the exit port 2108.Ignition occurs along each axis of the fuel/air injection ports 2104 a-iand colorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout thecombustion chamber 2102.

FIG. 22 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 2200 havinga combustion chamber 2202, a fuel injection port 2204 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port 2206 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 2208in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The air injectionport 2206 is located on a bottom side 2210 of the combustor 2200. Thefuel injection port 2204 is also located on the bottom side 2210 of thecombustor 2200. The exit port 2208 is located on the top, right side2214 of the combustor 2200.

As shown by FIG. 22, a high intensity co-flow configuration is createdwithin the combustion chamber 2202 as the heated air and fuel enter thecombustion chamber 2202 from the same side of the combustor 2200. Avertical uniform thermal field is created within the combustion chamber2202. The combustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 2202 via theexit port 2208. Ignition occurs along an axis of the air injection port2206 and colorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout thecombustion chamber 2202.

FIG. 23 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 2300 havinga combustion chamber 2302, a fuel injection port 2304 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port 2306 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 2308in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The air injectionport 2306 is located on a bottom side 2310 of the combustor 2300. Thefuel injection port 2304 is located on a top side 2312 of the combustor2300, and the exit port 2308 is located on the top, right side 2314 ofthe combustor 2300.

As shown by FIG. 23, a high intensity compact opposed flow configurationis created within the combustion chamber 2302 as the fuel enters thecombustion chamber 2302 from the fuel injection port 2304 located on thetop side 2312 and the heated air enters the combustion chamber 2302 fromthe air injection port 2306 located on the bottom side 2310 of thecombustor 2300. A vertical uniform thermal field is created within thecombustion chamber 2302. The combustion byproducts exit the combustionchamber 2302 via the exit port 2308. Ignition occurs in proximity to thefuel injection port 2304 and colorless distributed combustion occursmainly throughout the combustion chamber 2302.

FIG. 24 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 2400 havinga combustion chamber 2402, a fuel injection port 2404 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port 2406 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 2408in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The air injectionport 2406 is located on a bottom side 2410 of the combustor 1400. Thefuel injection port 2404 is also located on the bottom side 2410 of thecombustor 2400, and the exit port 2408 is located on the top, right side2414 of the combustor 2400.

As shown by FIG. 24, a high intensity compact co-flow configuration iscreated within the combustion chamber 2402 as the fuel enters thecombustion chamber 2402 from the fuel injection port 2404 located on thebottom side 2410 of the combustor 2200 and the heated air enters thecombustion chamber 2402 from the air injection port 2406 also located onthe bottom side 2410 of the combustor 2400. A vertical uniform thermalfield is created within the center of the combustion chamber 2402. Thecombustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 2402 via the exit port2408. Ignition occurs along an axis of the air injection port 2406 andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 2402.

FIG. 25 illustrates a rectangular gas turbine CDC combustor 2500 havinga combustion chamber 2502, a fuel injection port 2504 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port 2506 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 2508in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The air injectionport 2506 is located on a top side 2510 of the combustor 2500. The fuelinjection port 2504 is located on a bottom side 2512 of the combustor2500, and the exit port 2508 is located on the top, right side 2514 ofthe combustor 2500.

As shown by FIG. 25, a high intensity compact opposed flow configurationis created within the combustion chamber 2502 as the fuel enters thecombustion chamber 2502 from the fuel injection port 2504 located on thebottom side 2512 and the heated air enters the combustion chamber 2502from the air injection port 2506 located on the top side 2510 of thecombustor 2500. A vertical uniform thermal field is created within thecombustion chamber 2502. The combustion byproducts exit the combustionchamber 2502 via the exit port 2508. Ignition occurs in proximity to thefuel injection port 2504 and colorless distributed combustion occursmainly throughout the combustion chamber 2502.

FIGS. 26-45 are cross-sectional views of cylindrical gas turbine CDCcombustors having a housing defining a cylindrical combustion chamber,at least one air injection port and at least one fuel injection port, orat least one fuel/air injection port, and an exit port. Each port is influid communication with the combustion chamber. It is contemplated thatthe housing can also be elliptical or stadium shaped.

FIG. 26 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 2600 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 2602, a fuel injection port 2604 influid communication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port2606 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exitport 2608 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The airinjection port 2606 is located on an outer circular surface 2610 of thecombustor 2600. The fuel injection port 2604 is also located on theouter circular surface 2610 of the combustor 2600, and the exit port2608 is located on a top lateral side 2614 of the combustor 2600 along alongitudinal, central axis of the combustor 2600.

As shown by FIG. 26, the heated air is injected tangentially withrespect to the outer circular surface 2610 and the fuel is injectedradially into the cylindrical combustion chamber 2602. A verticaluniform thermal field is created within the combustion chamber 2602. Thecombustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 2602 via the exit port2608. Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel injection port 2604 andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 2602.

FIG. 27 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 2700 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 2702, a fuel injection port 2704 influid communication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port2706 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exitport 2708 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The airinjection port 2706 is located on an outer circular surface 2710 of thecombustor 2700. The fuel injection port 2704 is also located on theouter circular surface 2710 of the combustor 2700, and the exit port2708 is located on a top lateral side 2714 of the combustor 2700 along alongitudinal, central axis of the combustor 2700.

As shown by FIG. 27, the heated air is injected at an angle with respectto the outer circular surface 2710 and the fuel is injected radiallyinto the cylindrical combustion chamber 2702. A vertical uniform thermalfield is created within the combustion chamber 2702. The combustionbyproducts exit the combustion chamber 2702 via the exit port 2708.Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel injection port 2704 andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly on one side of thecombustion chamber 2702.

FIG. 28 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 2800 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 2802, a fuel injection port 2804 influid communication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port2806 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exitport 2808 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The airinjection port 2806 is located on an outer circular surface 2810 of thecombustor 2800. The fuel injection port 2804 and the exit port 2808 arealso located on the outer circular surface 2810 of the combustor 2800.

As shown by FIG. 28, the heated air is injected tangentially withrespect to the outer circular surface 2810 and the fuel is injectedradially into the cylindrical combustion chamber 2802. A verticaluniform thermal field is created within the combustion chamber 2802. Thecombustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 2802 via the exit port2808. Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel injection port 2804 andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 2802.

FIG. 29 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 2900 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 2902, a plurality of fuel injectionports 2904 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber, aplurality of air injection ports 2906 in fluid communication with thecombustion chamber, and an exit port 2908 in fluid communication withthe combustion chamber. The air injection ports 2906 are located on anouter circular surface 2910 of the combustor 2900. The fuel injectionports 2904 are also located on the outer circular surface 2910 of thecombustor 2900, and the exit port 2908 is located on a top lateral side2914 of the combustor 2900 along a longitudinal, central axis of thecombustor 2900.

As shown by FIG. 29, the heated air and the fuel are injected radiallytowards the center of the combustion chamber 2902. A vertical uniformthermal field is created within the combustion chamber 2902. Thecombustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 2902 via the exit port2908. Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel injection ports 2904 andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 2902.

FIG. 30 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 3000 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 3002, a plurality of fuel/air injectionports 3004 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber, and anexit port 3008 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. Thefuel/air injection ports 3004 are located on an outer circular surface3010 of the combustor 3000. The exit port 3008 is located on a toplateral side 3014 of the combustor 3000 along a longitudinal, centralaxis of the combustor 3000.

As shown by FIG. 30, the heated air and the fuel are premixed andinjected radially towards the center of the combustion chamber 3002. Avertical uniform thermal field is created within the combustion chamber3002. The combustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 3002 via theexit port 3008. Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel/air injectionports 3004 and colorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughoutthe combustion chamber 3002.

FIG. 31 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 3100 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 3102, a fuel/air injection port 3104 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 3108in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The fuel/airinjection port 3104 is located on an outer circular surface 3110 of thecombustor 3100. The exit port 3108 is located on a top lateral side 3114of the combustor 3100 along a longitudinal, central axis of thecombustor 3100.

As shown by FIG. 31, the heated air and the fuel are not premixed andinjected tangentially with respect to the outer circular surface 3110 ofthe combustion chamber 3102. The fuel is injected immediately behind theair injection. A vertical uniform thermal field is created within thecombustion chamber 3102. The combustion byproducts exit the combustionchamber 3102 via the exit port 3108. Ignition occurs in proximity to thefuel/air injection port 3104 and colorless distributed combustion occursmainly throughout the combustion chamber 3102.

FIG. 32 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 3200 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 3202, a fuel/air injection port 3204 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 3208in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The fuel/airinjection port 3204 is located on an outer circular surface 3210 of thecombustor 3200. The exit port 3208 is located on a top lateral side 3214of the combustor 3200 along a longitudinal, central axis of thecombustor 3200.

As shown by FIG. 32, the heated air and the fuel are not premixed andinjected tangentially with respect to the outer circular surface 3210 ofthe combustion chamber 3202. The fuel is injected co-annularly withrespect to the air injection. A vertical uniform thermal field iscreated within the combustion chamber 3202. The combustion byproductsexit the combustion chamber 3202 via the exit port 3208. Ignition occursin proximity to the fuel/air injection port 3204 and colorlessdistributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustion chamber3202.

FIG. 33 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 3300 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 3302, a fuel/air injection port 3304 influid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exit port 3308in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The fuel/airinjection port 3304 is located on an outer circular surface 3310 of thecombustor 3300. The exit port 3308 is located on a top lateral side 3314of the combustor 3300 along a longitudinal, central axis of thecombustor 3300.

As shown by FIG. 33, the heated air and the fuel are premixed andinjected tangentially with respect to the outer circular surface 3310 ofthe combustion chamber 3302. A vertical uniform thermal field is createdwithin the combustion chamber 3302. The combustion byproducts exit thecombustion chamber 3302 via the exit port 3308. Ignition occurs inproximity to the fuel/air injection port 3304 and colorless distributedcombustion occurs mainly throughout the combustion chamber 3302.

FIG. 34 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 3400 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 3402, a fuel injection port 3404 influid communication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port3406 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exitport 3408 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The airinjection port 3406 is located on an outer circular surface 3410 of thecombustor 3400. The fuel injection port 3404 and the exit port 3408 arealso located on the outer circular surface 3410 of the combustor 3400.

As shown by FIG. 34, the heated air and fuel are injected tangentiallywith respect to the outer circular surface 3410 of the cylindricalcombustion chamber 3402. A vertical uniform thermal field is createdwithin the combustion chamber 3402. The combustion byproducts exit thecombustion chamber 3402 via the exit port 3408. Ignition occurs inproximity to the fuel injection port 3404 and colorless distributedcombustion occurs mainly in the central region of the combustion chamber3402.

FIG. 35 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 3500 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 3502, two fuel/air injection ports 3504a-b, and an exit port 3508 in fluid communication with the combustionchamber. The fuel/air injection ports 3504 a-b and the exit port 3508are located on an outer circular surface 3510 of the combustor 3500.

As shown by FIG. 35, the heated air and fuel are premixed and injectedtangentially with respect to the outer circular surface 3510 of thecylindrical combustion chamber 3502. A vertical uniform thermal field iscreated within the combustion chamber 3502. The combustion byproductsexit the combustion chamber 3502 via the exit port 3508. Ignition occursin proximity to the fuel/air injection ports 3504 a-b and colorlessdistributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustion chamber3502.

FIG. 36 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 3600 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 3602, two fuel injection ports 3604a-b, two air injection ports 3606 a-b, and an exit port 3608 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber. All the ports are located onan outer circular surface 3610 of the combustor 3600.

As shown by FIG. 36, the heated air and fuel are injected tangentiallywith respect to the outer circular surface 3610 of the cylindricalcombustion chamber 3602. The fuel is injected immediately behind the airinjection. A vertical uniform thermal field is created within thecombustion chamber 3602. The combustion byproducts exit the combustionchamber 3602 via the exit port 3608. Ignition occurs in proximity to thefuel and air injection ports and colorless distributed combustion occursmainly throughout the combustion chamber 3602.

FIG. 37 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 3700 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 3702, a fuel injection port 3704 influid communication with the combustion chamber, two air injection ports3706 a-b, and an exit port 3708 in fluid communication with thecombustion chamber. The fuel and air injection ports are located on anouter circular surface 3710 of the combustor 3700, and the exit port3708 is located along the longitudinal, central axis of the combustor3700 on a top lateral side 3714 thereof.

As shown by FIG. 37, the heated air is injected tangentially withrespect to the outer circular surface 3710 of the cylindrical combustionchamber 3702. The fuel is injected radially within the combustionchamber 3702 at a high velocity (e.g., 10 m/s to 100 m/s). A verticaluniform thermal field is created within the combustion chamber 3702. Thecombustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 3702 via the exit port3708. Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel and air injection portsand colorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout thecombustion chamber 3702.

FIG. 38 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 3800 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 3802, a fuel injection port 3804 influid communication with the combustion chamber, two air injection ports3806 a-b, and an exit port 3808 in fluid communication with thecombustion chamber. The fuel and air injection ports are located on anouter circular surface 3810 of the combustor 3800, and the exit port3808 is located along the longitudinal, central axis of the combustor3800 on a top lateral side 3814 thereof.

As shown by FIG. 38, the heated air is injected tangentially withrespect to the outer circular surface 3810 of the cylindrical combustionchamber 3802. The fuel is injected radially within the combustionchamber 3802 at a high velocity (e.g., 10 m/s to 100 m/s). Two verticaluniform thermal fields are created within the combustion chamber 3802 oneither side of the longitudinal axis of the combustor 3800. Thecombustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 3802 via the exit port3808. Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel injection port 3804.

FIG. 39 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 3900 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 3902, two fuel injection ports 3904a-b, two air injection ports 3906 a-b, and an exit port 3908 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber. The fuel and air injectionports are located on an outer circular surface 3910 of the combustor3900, and the exit port 3908 is located along the longitudinal, centralaxis of the combustor 3900 on a top lateral side 3914 thereof.

As shown by FIG. 39, the heated air is injected tangentially withrespect to the outer circular surface 3910 of the cylindrical combustionchamber 3902. The fuel is injected radially within the combustionchamber 3902 after dilution of the heated air. The heated air is dilutedby mixing of the air jets from air injection ports 3906 a-b with thecombustion products within the combustion chamber 3902 to providediluted low oxygen concentration air at an elevated temperature. Avertical uniform thermal field is created within the combustion chamber3902. The combustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 3902 via theexit port 3908. Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel injection port3904 and colorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout thecombustion chamber 3902.

FIG. 40 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 4000 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 4002, a fuel injection port 4004 influid communication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port4006 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exitport 4008 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The fueland air injection ports are located on an outer circular surface 4010 ofthe combustor 4000, and the exit port 4008 is located along thelongitudinal, central axis of the combustor 4000 on a top lateral side4014 thereof.

As shown by FIG. 40, the heated air is injected inwardly and the fuel isinjected radially within the combustion chamber 4002. A vertical uniformthermal field is created within the combustion chamber 4002. Thecombustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 4002 via the exit port4008. Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel injection port 4004 andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 4002.

FIG. 41 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 4100 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 4102, a fuel injection port 4104 influid communication with the combustion chamber, an air injection port4106 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber, and an exitport 4108 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber. The fueland air injection ports are located on an outer circular surface 4110 ofthe combustor 4100, and the exit port 4108 is located along thelongitudinal, central axis of the combustor 4100 on a top lateral side4114 thereof.

As shown by FIG. 41, the heated air is injected tangentially withrespect to the outer circular surface 4110 of the cylindrical combustionchamber 4102. The fuel is injected radially within the combustionchamber 4102. A vertical uniform thermal field is created within thecombustion chamber 4102. The combustion byproducts exit the combustionchamber 4102 via the exit port 4108. Ignition occurs in proximity to thefuel injection port 4104 and colorless distributed combustion occursmainly throughout the combustion chamber 4102.

FIG. 42 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 4200 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 4202, a fuel injection port 4204 influid communication with the combustion chamber, two air injection ports4206 a-b, and an exit port 4208 in fluid communication with thecombustion chamber. The fuel and air injection ports are located on anouter circular surface 4210 of the combustor 4200, and the exit port4208 is located along the longitudinal, central axis of the combustor4200 on a top lateral side 4214 thereof.

As shown by FIG. 42, the heated air is injected tangentially withrespect to the outer circular surface 4210 of the cylindrical combustionchamber 4202. The fuel is injected radially within the combustionchamber 4202 at a low velocity (e.g., less than 10 m/s). A verticaluniform thermal field is created within the combustion chamber 4202. Thecombustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 4202 via the exit port4208. Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel injection port andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 4202, except for two regions in proximity to each air injectionport 4206.

FIG. 43 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 4300 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 4302, a fuel injection port 4304 influid communication with the combustion chamber, two air injection ports4306 a-b, and an exit port 4308 in fluid communication with thecombustion chamber. The fuel and air injection ports are located on anouter circular surface 4310 of the combustor 4300, and the exit port4308 is located along the longitudinal, central axis of the combustor4300 on a top lateral side 4314 thereof.

As shown by FIG. 43, the heated air is injected tangentially withrespect to the outer circular surface 4310 of the cylindrical combustionchamber 4302. The fuel is injected radially within the combustionchamber 4302 at a low velocity (e.g., less than 10 m/s). A verticaluniform thermal field is created within the combustion chamber 4302. Thecombustion byproducts exit the combustion chamber 4302 via the exit port4308. Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel injection port andcolorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout the combustionchamber 4302, except for a region near the fuel injection port 4304.

FIG. 44 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 4400 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 4402, a plurality of fuel/air injectionports 4404 a-h, including one large fuel/air injection port 4404i, andan exit port 4408 in fluid communication with the combustion chamber.The fuel/air injection ports 4404 a-h are located on an outer circularsurface 4410 of the combustor 4400; the large fuel/air injection port4404i is located along a longitudinal, central axis of the combustor4400. The exit port 4408 is donut-shaped and located annularly withrespect to the longitudinal, central axis of the combustor 4400.

As shown by FIG. 44, the premixed fuel and heated air is injectedradially from the fuel/air injection ports 4404 a-i. A uniform thermalfield is created within the combustion chamber 4402. The combustionbyproducts exit the combustion chamber 4402 via the exit port 4408.Ignition occurs in proximity to the fuel/air injection ports 4404 a-iand colorless distributed combustion occurs mainly throughout thecombustion chamber 4402, except for a circumferential region inproximity to the outer circular surface 4410.

FIG. 45 illustrates a cylindrical gas turbine CDC combustor 4500 havinga cylindrical combustion chamber 4502, a plurality of air injectionports 4506 a-h, a large fuel injection port 4504 in fluid communicationwith the combustion chamber, and an exit port 4508 in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber. The air injection ports 4506a-h are located on an outer circular surface 4510 of the combustor 4500;the large fuel injection port 4504 is located along a longitudinal,central axis of the combustor 4500. The exit port 4508 is donut-shapedand located annularly with respect to the longitudinal, central axis ofthe combustor 4500.

As shown by FIG. 45, the heated air is injected radially from the airinjection ports 4504 a-h. A uniform thermal field is created within thecombustion chamber 4502. The combustion byproducts exit the combustionchamber 4502 via the exit port 4508. Ignition occurs in proximity to thefuel injection ports 4504 and colorless distributed combustion occursmainly throughout the combustion chamber 4502, except for acircumferential region in proximity to the outer circular surface 4510.

The described embodiments of the present disclosure are intended to beillustrative rather than restrictive, and are not intended to representevery embodiment of the present disclosure. Various modifications andvariations can be made without departing from the spirit or scope of thedisclosure as set forth in the following claims both literally and inequivalents recognized in law.

What is claimed is:
 1. A gas turbine combustor comprising: a housingdefining first and second arcuate surface portions and defining acombustion chamber; at least one first fluid injection port extendingthrough the first arcuate surface portion of the housing and in fluidcommunication with the combustion chamber; at least one second fluidinjection port extending through the first arcuate surface portion ofthe housing and in fluid communication with the combustion chamber; andan exit port located on the first arcuate surface portion of the housingand in fluid communication with the combustion chamber; wherein the atleast one first fluid injection port, the at least one second fluidinjection port, and the exit port are located on the first arcuatesurface portion of the housing such that during operation a heatedoxidizer fluid is introduced into the combustion chamber via the atleast one first fluid injection port and fuel is introduced into thecombustion chamber via the at least one second fluid injection port tocause ignition and colorless distributed combustion to occur within thecombustion chamber creating a single uniform thermal field within thehousing, and wherein the combustion byproducts exit the combustionchamber via the exit port.
 2. The gas turbine combustor according toclaim 1, wherein the housing is selected from the group consisting ofrectangular, square, circular, stadium and elliptical shaped housings,and wherein the at least one first fluid injection port is located on aside of the first arcuate surface portion of the housing which isopposite a side of the first arcuate surface portion of the housingwhere the at least one second fluid injection port is located.
 3. Thegas turbine combustor according to claim 1, wherein the housing isselected from the group consisting of cylindrical and elliptical shapedhousings, and wherein the exit port is located on a lateral side of thefirst arcuate surface portion of the housing.
 4. The gas turbinecombustor according to claim 1, wherein the housing is selected from thegroup consisting of cylindrical, stadium and elliptical shaped housings,and wherein the exit port is located on an outer circular surface of thefirst arcuate surface portion of the housing.
 5. The gas turbinecombustor according to claim 1, wherein the housing is selected from thegroup consisting of cylindrical, stadium and elliptical shaped housings,and wherein the at least one first injection port and the at least onesecond injection port are located along an outer circular surface of thefirst arcuate surface portion of the housing.